Saturday, March 29, 2014

It's a very dreary day, actually it's been dreary for a few days now but yesterday I got a delivery from the Cat's Pajamas so I was happy to spend the day indoors playing with paper and ink. The gray section in the middle lifts up to reveal the paper pieced bun bun under his stripey umbrella. It looks pretty dull and flat in the photo but the layers give it some oomph in real life.

The layout for this card is based on a Retro Sketch challenge that has already closed. I liked the idea of a cut out with something fun peeking through. I decided to use it even though the challenge was over. In order to play with some of my new TCP toys I combined this week's challenge "Make a card that has clouds in it" with the sketch. Actually, the card has clouds removed from it, eventually one was added .

The cut out clouds don't reveal much of bun bun, so here's a photo of him in his yellow wellies.

Plaids and stripes, or houndstooth check work well for masculine cards so I've kept the embellishments down to a couple of pearls for a dash of color, in the corner.

Friday, March 28, 2014

Can you remember a year that you wanted spring to arrive more than you do this year? I know that technically spring is here but when my friends tell me they just got 5 more inches of snow I don't think that spring is here yet. For those of you suffering through this horrible winter Stampin' for the Weekend has a challenge for you. Our theme is "Spring Colors", that ought to put you in a pleasant frame of mind. Working with pretty colors always works for me. If the truth be told, just working with my crafty goodies on anything works for me Our sponsor this week is Live and Love Crafts. Oh my goodness do they ever have some of the prettiest embellishments I've ever seen. If you fancy pearls and lace (and who doesn't) go take a stroll through that shop. You may never come out. When you do come back you should also take a peek at the rest of the design team's work. They always do a bang up job. Here's the deets:stamp - A Day for Daisies "Nesting" image; the Cat's Pajama's "Spring Fling" sentimentink - printer; Versa Magic "Aloe Vera" for Sentimentpaper - X-press Blending card Stock; Stampin' Up "Crisp Cantaloupe" and "Pistachio Pudding" card stock; "Sweet Sorbet" dspmiscellaneous - copics; pearls; My Favorite Things "blueprints 2" and "Oval" die-namics; Stampin' Up Crisp Cantaloupe stretch ruffle ribbon; pearls; baker's twine; SU Chevron border punchHere's the challenges:Stampin' for the Weekend - Spring ColorsPause, Dream, Enjoy #6 - TwineKaboodle Doodles #216 - Dreaming of SpringCome and Get It - It is a Easter/Spring ChallengeWhat If Wednesdays DCC326 - Things With WingsA Day for Daisies #92 - Pretty PastelsThanks for stopping by, come back again.

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Happy Wednesday to you! Are you needing a little challenge to get you over the hump? How about this week's Paper Pretties "Paper Piercing"? That's piercing not piecing, there's an "r" in it. I'm not pointing this out because I think you may not be bright enough to spot that difference, I'm pointing it out because I always miss the "r" and make a pieced card. Don't believe me - take a look at my example, the egg shell is pieced, fortunately I saved myself by using a pierced die, the rectangles that I used to cut out the card stock the image is stamped on and the blue mat behind it are both pierced. It's a little hard to see that's why I used such a large photo.I had a little laugh at myself, I was late to post this card and it's a good thing, because until I saw today's Paper Pretties blog I didn't know that it piercing not piecing. Maybe I should just make it a habit to pierce some part of any card I plan to enter into a challenge that I think is for "paper piecing" just in case. It couldn't hurt.There's still time to take advantage of the FREE SHIPPING at the Paper Pretties shop. For the month of March all orders over $10 will ship free. Just enter the code "FREESHIP" when you are checking out.There's also this adorable set of digi images available. They are sold as a fund raiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Since it's digital you'll get it right away and have plenty of time to use for Easter Cards, invitations, or decorations - anything your heart desires and you can feel good about making the purchase because you've helped someone. Here's the deets:stamp - Paper Pretties "One of Those Days"ink - Memento "Tuxedo Black"; Ranger "Scattered Straw" sponged around image paper - Neenah Classic Crest Natural White for image; Close To My Heart "Jubilee" pack miscellaneous - copics; Stampin' Up "Modern Label" punch; My Favorite Things "Pierced Rectangle Stax" and "Chicken Wire" die-namics; Recollections Crafting Tape; Bling; Baker's TwineHere's the challenges:Paper Pretties PWC303 - Paper PiercingPause, Dream, Enjoy #6 - TwineCrafty Card Makers #112 - Decorative Paper PrickingSister Act #49 - Anything GoesBrown Sugar #86 - Anything GoesThanks for stopping by, please come back again.

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Paper Pretties challenge for you this week is to create your own background paper. While you don't have to use Paper Pretties products to play in our challenges this is one challenge that quite a few of our stamp sets would be perfect to use. There are a lot of Paper Pretty stamp sets that have one or more large main stamp or stamps and one or more small co-ordinating tiny stamps. On my card I used the "Dog Gone Birthday" set. It has that great paw print, a large bone and a small bone. I don't usually make background paper but I like to use the stamps on the inside of the card. By the way, a sentiment can be stamped onto your background paper. For instance, the instance the word "Woof!" could be stamped over and over again, that would look great.

This time of year you might want to make an Easter card in which case the Hippity Hoppity Sophia stamp set is a great choice. I made a card for the same themed challenge with that set last year, you can click here to see it.Speaking of Easter cards we've got an adorable set of digital "Easter Babies" images available in the Paper Pretties store. These are sold as a fund raiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. You can do a good deed and have something fun to show for it. Don't forget that for the month of March we are having a Special! That's right all month long just enter the code "FREESHIP" at checkout on all orders over $10 and get FREE SHIPPING! So if you're ordering anything besides digis, and you really want to order those cute "Easter Baby" digis, that total more than $10 make sure you put the code in before you close out your order. You deserve a present, spoil yourself and place order. It'll make you happy. I know it makes me happy.Here's the deets:stamp - Paper Pretties "Dog Gone Birthday"ink - Memento "Tuxedo Black", "Rich Cocoa" and "Teal Zeal"; Ranger "Scattered Straw"paper - X-Press Blending card stock; Stampin' Up "Certainly Celery", "Bermuda Bay" and "So Saffron" card stockmiscellaneous - copics; Close To My Heart Aqua Dots; Spellbinder's Oval and Scalloped Oval dies; Martha Stewart tag punch; twineHere's the challenges:Paper Pretties PWC302 - Create Your Own Background PaperPause, Dream, Enjoy #6 - TwineWhoopsie Daisy - Make or Add a TagSentimental Sundays #198 - Cute and CuddlySimply Create Too #57- AnimalsFussy and Fancy #109- Happy BirthdayThanks for stopping by, come back again.

Friday, March 14, 2014

Happy Friday, and greetings from Jellypark Friends. It's time for another challenge, this fortnight the theme is "Pretty Pastels". Most of you have had a little too much winter this year so this is the perfect challenge for bringing out some papers with spring themes. Just looking at some yellow gingham will put a smile on your face.This looks like a box but it's a card. That's right, it's a card. If the embellishments aren't too big and thick it'll fold flat and fit into an envelope. Even with all the buttons and flowers on this box it still folded up and went into an envelope. I got the idea for this at the new Jellypark Digital Craft Store. Claire, the owner and the creator of all the adorable images at Jellypark made one of these cards with a baby theme and published a free tutorial for it on the store's website. The directions are very easy to follow, you have got to try one, you'll be amazed.

From a slightly different angle you can see that the bunny holding the basket is held up on a stick pin (so is the green egg with the pink hearts). The tutorial calls for the use of craft wire to hold up the images but at this time I was couldn't remember where I have stored my wire but I could find the stick pins. So just keep in mind when you're following a tutorial, you can take some liberties and still get good results.This box went together so easily I'm ready to make another one. Wouldn't it be great in as a Christmas card or a birthday card. By the way, as pretty and as much fun as this card is, I don't recommend mailing it unless it is going inside a package or a bubble envelope. Here's the deets:stamps - Jellypark Friends "Easter Eggs", "Bunny Rabbit", "Charity Rabbit and Balloon", "Ewe Are So Sweet Sheep", "Woman in a Hat Reading a Book"ink - printerpaper - Stampin' Up "Whisper White" card stock; Bazzill "Chablis" and "Parakeet" card stock; October Afternoon "Sidewalks" patterned papermiscellaneous - copics; butterfly and daisy buttons; ribbon rose; prima flower; stick pins; Martha Stewart grass border punch; stickles; ribbonHere's the challenges:Jellypark Friends - Pretty PastelsMoving Along with the Times - Make a Box and Decorate ItL'il Red Wagon #228 - Truly Dimensional

Happy Weekend Peeps! I've been retired for a few years now and I can still get excited about the weekend. I used to be excited because I would have a couple days off from work and get to do fun things with my friends. These days when I get excited it's because there are fun events scheduled on weekends that I hope to attend. I love when I have time to stamp on the weekends but I try to make time to do some arts and/or crafts everyday and these days if I don't make time to do some everyday I end up in big trouble. But I digress...At Stampin' for the Weekend we've got a new challenge for you. This is one that everyone should be able to play along. It's "Anything Goes". As long as you use a stamp or digi you can make any kind of card or project. The challenge is being sponsored by Marker Pop. What a fun shop that is. As soon as you get a chance take a break and stop on over there, you'll have a great time shopping.

My card is an "anything" card, an all occasion card. One of the things you can't see in the frontal photo of the card is the "Tole" layering of the balloon. This photo taken on the side shows that every part of the balloon that could be considered a layer has been done over, cut out and popped up. The balloon portion of the image has been stamped 5 times. After coloring the images they are cut out. The first popped up layer is the entire balloon. The next layer that is colored and cut is the banner and rosette going around the center of the balloon. Next the rosette is done, then the last piece is the blue center. There's a small blue pearl in the center of the blue layer. While this doesn't shoe well in the photograph it looks really good in real life and it's very easy to do. If you've never tried it, next time you're looking for something new give this a go.Here's the deets:stamp - Close to My Heart "Give a Lift"ink - Memento Rich Cocoa; Ranger Scatter Strawpaper - Close to My Heart "Balloon Ride" packmiscellaneous - copics; twine; charm; machine stitching; Balloon Ride Assortment; Spellbinders Opulent Ovals dieHere's the challenges:Stampin' for the Weekend - Anything GoesThe Sweetest Thing - Sweet Sunday Sketch 210L'il Red Wagon #228 - Truly DimensionalCrafting for All Seasons #72 - Spring Into SpringTuesday Throwdown #186 - StitchingCreative Card Crew 57 - CharmsLove to Create #106 - Anything GoesSweet Stampin' - Be Inspired by a Song, Film or Book ("Around the World in 80 Days)Thanks for stopping by, come back again.

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Happy Birthday Pardner! I love Paper Pretties "Cowboy Cooper" stamp set and that works out great for me because this week Paper Pretties challenge PWC301 is "Birthday Cards". I don't know about you but I always need birthday cards, and I especially always need masculine cards. Your birthday card entry can be masculine or feminine, it can even be for a pet, you don't even have to use Paper Pretty products but if you have them we'd sure like to see them. Because this card is for a boy I've kept it relatively clean and simple but I couldn't resist using a little cord to hold a horse charm. The only other embellishment is a star punched out from card stock. Buttons and plain brads are usually okay but for me, I think when it comes to cards for guys, usually it's better to keep things minimal. The image panel was cut with the largest rectangle die in the set so before I took it out of the die I sponged distress ink around the edges. When it's removed from the die the white edge that was under the die resembles a mat.

The weather this winter has been pretty miserable for most of the states. In my neck of the woods it hasn't been too bad but many of my friends and relatives have been hit with more snow, ice and cold than they've seen in years. So now that it's March everybody is anxiously awaiting spring. Every year at this time Heather, the owner of Paper Pretties, has a fund raiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. All of the proceeds (less the PayPal fees) from the sale of this digital stamp set Easter Babies are donated to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Since this set is digital it'll be readily available and quantities aren't limited. Your order is greatly appreciated. Order now and you'll have plenty of time to use it for Easter cards and decorations.And how about FREE SHIPPING! During the month of March all Paper Pretties orders over $10 will ship for free. Just enter the code FREESHIP when you place your order, it's as simple as that, and don't you deserve a little present. Yes you do, so go shopping and have some fun.Here's the deets:stamp: Paper Pretties "Cowboy Cooper"ink - Memento Tuxedo Blackpaper - Copic X-press Blending card stock; Stampin' Up Garden Green card stock; Bazzill Yukon Gold card stock; October Afternoon Sasparilla patterned papermiscellaneous - copics; Stampin' Up star punch; twine; horse charm; Spellbinder's Rectangle dieHere's the challenges:Paper Pretties PWC301 - Birthday CardsCreative Card Crew 57 - CharmLadybug Crafts Ink - One for the BoysSentimental Sundays #197 - Cards For a Boy/ManCraft Your Passion #204 - Young at HeartOne Stitch at a Time #203 - For a BoyThanks for stopping by, come back again.

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Happy, happy, happy. That's what I think when I see this girl with the balloon. She looks so dang happy. I hope you will be that happy when you're making your card. I've been told I have a grin on my face or I'm deep in concentration when I making cards. It's usually one or the other and I'm usually oblivious as to which one it is unless someone breaks into my train of thought.So it's Wednesday, happy hump day my friends. That makes it time for Paper Pretties challenge. This week we've got "Use Lots of Layers". So you clean and simple gals can start crying now and get with the program. Pull out lots of paper cause we got to make a thick card this week. If you count every cut of paper on my card there are 15 layers. If you count a mat as part of the layer then it's down to 7 layers. Either way that's pretty good. I think we'll be happy to see 3 layer on your cards but I liked to see you push for four or five. Go check out some sketch challenges and you'll have some help finding cards with lots of layers. This card is using the current Mojo Monday sketch.

Did you ever wonder what happens when you squeeze you stickles container too hard? This is what happens Lovely isn't it. Amazingly I did not totally freak out, just a little freak out and I managed to grab some tools and paper tools to clean it up. I was actually able to save the card. In the end I decided to cut another flower because there was just too much yellow tint on the pink for my taste but it didn't look too bad. I decided I'd change to pearls for the center of the flower. I'd had enough glitter for one day.